Canine chronicles

Ever since the early days of my boyhood, I have been overly smitten with canines. Of the umpteen pups I, a boy of nine had brought home from our neck of the woods, one black, densely-furry pup was lucky to get my mom’s consent to be reared as a pet. Cock-a-hoop with joy, I took him around my siblings, two sisters and a brother, all the elders who were won over by its endearing looks, began petting him. Soon winning oodles of love and affection from every one of us, the tiny stranger became another member of our family. He came to be called Karadi (bear) owing to his thick, furry coat.

Munnu, the gardener in our house, who also doubled as a flesher in a mutton stall nearby, would on occasion bring raw mutton from his butchery and feed it to Karadi in the snicket adjacent to our house, quite unbeknownst to our mom who was feeding him veg food alone. He was heartily fond of our dog that used to play with him often. The practice added to the strength and ferocity of the dog all the more.

My dad, a Research Assistant at the department of archaeology at Madras University who was lodged with one of our relatives in Madras, would come and be with us only for short periods. His only objection to us rearing a dog in our house was it should not enter his room, which was almost a library in our house. We ensured that we abided by his request.

Panneerselvam, one of my classmates from a different section, staying some three or four houses next to ours, always carried a grudge against me for reasons known to him alone. Once, entering our garden in the front yard, he started plucking some vegetables without permission from anyone in our family.

When I objected to it he began abusing me. As a result, a fisticuff ensued between us. Karadi that was lying couchant till then in the portico straight came running to us, tore off his shirt and mauled his forearms. Utterly scared he withdrew from the dust-up and left the spot.

Another time, while walking along the marshy bank of an almost brimming lake with Karadi beside me I slipped suddenly and belly-flopped in the water. Karadi tout de suite jumped into the lake and began pulling me out of the water, gripping me by my shirt-collar and brought me safe to the bank as I had not learnt swimming by then.

Thus it was my pet canine that saved me from untoward situations in the early days of my boyhood.